All Blog Posts Tagged 'Eilis' - liveIreland2015-03-03T18:52:02Zhttp://my.liveireland.com/profiles/blog/feed?tag=Eilis&xn_auth=noMargeson on the music May 17th 2010tag:my.liveireland.com,2010-05-17:957489:BlogPost:1615042010-05-17T16:56:09.000ZBill Margesonhttp://my.liveireland.com/profile/BillMargeson
The regular reader knows the frequency we bring the London distribution and promotion firm, Copperplate Distribution, to the fore, as a service for you. Copperplate founder, Alan O’Leary has been mentioned on these pages almost as often as Liz Carroll, Jimmy Keane and Reeltime over the years. For good reasons. And, here they are.…<br></br>
The regular reader knows the frequency we bring the London distribution and promotion firm, Copperplate Distribution, to the fore, as a service for you. Copperplate founder, Alan O’Leary has been mentioned on these pages almost as often as Liz Carroll, Jimmy Keane and Reeltime over the years. For good reasons. And, here they are.<br/> <a class="noborder" href="http://api.ning.com/files/cnJpld3fNWXvL0ljEGXT*lDkmAWagVZjbytx5cxu9-oeaQXt4pFQMbOe8cX*U3wOJPbiXnAxCvsf*ht7ukzREJOXX5Wmeojn/AlanOLeary.jpg" target="_blank"><img style="FLOAT: right" src="http://api.ning.com/files/cnJpld3fNWXvL0ljEGXT*lDkmAWagVZjbytx5cxu9-oeaQXt4pFQMbOe8cX*U3wOJPbiXnAxCvsf*ht7ukzREJOXX5Wmeojn/AlanOLeary.jpg?width=300"/></a>There are precious few Alan O’Learys left. Now, it is true that guys like Alan outlive and end up burying us all, but still, there aren’t that many left. Come to think of it, there never were that many in the first place. If you are a newbie here, Copperplate handles only the top, top traditional Irish music artists in Europe, with some from America thrown in, as well. Copperplate representation in any form means quality. Assured. Probably before you read the rest of this, you should Google Copperplate Distribution, and check it out. You’ll see. What you will notice is a total mix of the most famous and best in real Irish music, such as Shaun Davey, Rita Connelly, Tommy Peoples, Eilis Kennedy and Teada, through lesser known, but vastly important trad artists. Never heard of Chris Droney? Bobby Casey? Cillian Vallely? You should have, and not only has Alan O’Leary heard them, he has signed them up. Copperplate’s secret is this. Much of Alan’s life has been split among three forces. The need to make a living, his total love and devotion to trad and his principle of only handling the best. Himself, a noted wooden flute and tin whistle player (why hasn’t he made an album?) he knows them all. He knew them all. Seamus Ennis? Willie Clancy? Sean O’Riada? The Keanes? The Everly Brothers? Howlin’ Wolf? Wait. Howlin’ and the Everlys? Yup.<br/> Born in Dublin, Alan’s family moved to London when he was 10. He arrived just in time to grow into that misty, magical, musical memory muse of the 60’s, by which time he was besotted by the music of the rockers. He attended almost all of the legendary London clubs of that time. He laughs easily about those days. “Wonderful, marvelous,” he enthuses in his laughing way with a word. “The less said of some of many of my experiences in that time, the better. But, it was all fantastic in London then.” Let’s cut to the chase now. During this time, he was washing the family car, when a neighbor heard the young rocker boy whistling an Irish tune he had heard somewhere. “Do you like Irish music?” asked the neighbor. It was the right neighbor, who then introduced him to the London musical scene in Fulham Broadway and the famous White Hart Public House. When Alan had replied in the affirmative, the adventure had really begun. For years, he was promoting and tour managing both rock and folk acts, including a good bit of time with the iconic, Ralph McTell. He got to know the business. Meanwhile, he was falling more and more in love with traditional music as he learned to play the flute and meeting essentially everyone in London and Ireland at the time. Everyone. Mention a name in the field, and Alan has not only met him or her, he knows them. “Well, they were all around in those days. And, there were not as many venues for them as there are today, so you could find them. There they would be in a regular session at a pub. And, if you knew how to behave, you could learn a lot.”<br/> He came into his adult years, completely at home in booking and creating concerts and tours, as well as managing artists on the road—somewhat akin to herding cats. As his reputation grew, he joined forces in the 90’s with the powerhouse of its day, Green Linnet, based in Connecticut. Alan represented Linnet in the U.K., and led it to a number one position in its field in sales, market presence and influence. Green Linnet was a powerhouse in America in Irish traditional music, and the powerhouse in the U.K. Salad days, in many ways. Not to put too fine a point on it, but the reason for the success, other than Alan’s considerable promotional abilities, was his personal knowledge of the retailers, the artists, the distributors, the producers, presenters, agents----the whole rainbow. Indeed, Alan was uniquely positioned. Green Linnet saw the opportunity. So did Alan. Fast forward to the eventual demise of Linnet. At this time, 1998 or so, he decided to form Copperplate. “I went to 10 artists and friends like Tommy Peoples and asked each of them for 10 cd’s. They kindly gave them, and I was off to the races!” <br/> Through the years there have been O’Leary-hosted radio programs, and he still appears as a guest on almost all the music shows with some regularity. His encyclopedic knowledge is legendary and welcomed by those less experienced. He now hosts the best Irish traditional music podcast in the world on a monthly format. It is available for subscription through iTunes---key word Copperplate. You can also have a listen through his site. In that site, you will also find the magic. The best of the best in trad. Legends. No nonsense. If you love the music, and you do--or else you wouldn’t be this far into this article--Copperplate Distribution is the most important site for you to bookmark in the music. End of. It is impossible to tell you all the artists or the variety of traditional offerings on the site. The key concept is the quality. 100%. The deal. The real Allie Dailey. <br/> “Well, I can say it has been an interesting journey. I’ve made a lot of friends, as well as memories. Most of them good! To tell you the truth, I’m not sure how it all happened. The starting place is music. Then, Irish music. When that gets into you, you do what you have to do, but you become a part of it. It becomes such a part of you. I’ve loved every minute of it. The early days in folk and rock, and then Irish. The secret is to stick with the best.”<br/> Well, that IS Copperplate. And, its artists. Check the albums and you will see the percentage of artists and companies that have more than one album working through Alan. They return time and time again for him to handle their music---and their careers. There are very, very few in this position. We could name them, but with the exception of Judith Joiner in America, there is no one actually doing the work at this level. <br/> Who wins? Well, the artists who have benefitted in so many ways, the companies—and, us! And, that is why you are reading about him here. Alan O’Leary would tell you he is the big winner. “I’ve gotten to spend my life in music. Who could do better?<br/> Indeed. And, who could do it better?<br/>Margeson on the Music Dec 09tag:my.liveireland.com,2009-12-10:957489:BlogPost:1472832009-12-10T00:30:00.000ZBill Margesonhttp://my.liveireland.com/profile/BillMargeson
LiveIreland Dec. 2009<br />
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I remember well when I started collecting antique images of Ulysses S. Grant, America’s greatest general. When anyone starts collecting, they are all in a mad rush. For me, it was anything with Grant’s image on it. For others, it is coins, stamps, old samplers, antique maps…whatever. And, for all those collectors, the result is always the same. The madness subsides, and through whatever process one goes through, the taste becomes more specific. Twists, turns and…
LiveIreland Dec. 2009<br />
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I remember well when I started collecting antique images of Ulysses S. Grant, America’s greatest general. When anyone starts collecting, they are all in a mad rush. For me, it was anything with Grant’s image on it. For others, it is coins, stamps, old samplers, antique maps…whatever. And, for all those collectors, the result is always the same. The madness subsides, and through whatever process one goes through, the taste becomes more specific. Twists, turns and modifications lead the ardent collector to study more specifically, and purchase more carefully. Inevitable, and beneficial.<br />
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<img src="http://api.ning.com/files/s2fOwPbjiogR6XjxiZSv7morTQxBaK5oWrGOlVP0kOhsj2UZ0fzcvJF5MXMn2TpV6eYrqQzhEPshTGFkIkQNbp2bdsdYcEm*/DSCN0965.JPG.jpg?width=300" alt="" width="300" height="224" style="float: right;"/>So it is with music----really, any art form. Having paid my way through college as a studio musician in Chicago while performing in different R&amp;B bands, I thought the be- all and end-alls were Sam and Dave, Ray Charles, Wilson Pickett and James Brown. And, so they are, even today---in their branch of music. Along the way, through a twisting path, I was introduced to real Irish music. It has stayed with me all these years, and having written about it for well over 20 years while receiving about 500 cd’s a year in the mail for possible review, (they used to be cassettes and before that, records! Actual records!!) the “Grant experience” has been repeated. Hopefully, the mad rush of, “Gee! I LOVE Irish music!!” mellows to a more discerning and knowledgeable set of tastes, with a better ear. And, then, certain artists change everything along the way, starting with an early collaborator and folk hero, Bruce Hirsch, to the great Irish groups we all know. When I came into it, DeDannan, Planxty, the Bothy Band, Christy Moore were all the go. Along the line, groups like Reeltime, Moving Cloud and the David Munnelly Band appear and change everything while confirming everything at the same time. Singers like Laura Smith, Cathie Ryan, Rita Connolly, Eddi Reader, Tim Dennehy, Seamus Heaney, Eilis Kennedy, Sean Tyrrell, Frank Harte and Tommy Fleming light a whole new path of meaning and beauty.<br />
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And, somewhere in all this, something else interesting happens. With certain artists, you begin to lose the ability to evaluate, never mind “judge” their music. What they produce is of such uniform brilliance, you have fallen in love, and love is blind. When, in the past, we have said we would listen to Cathie Ryan sing the phone book, we mean it. These artists are the essence of magic. So, when a new cd arrives, you know you are sunk. I have always thought it was nonsense that a writer or critic in any art form should be “objective”, or claim to be. News reporters should be objective. Critics are paid to be subjective. And, in that subjectivity, it is like falling in love with a woman. You lose all your faculties, walk around and stumble into things, hit your head getting into the car, become obsessed with it all. That is how a new album from a ton of Irish artists hits us. Sunk before the first tune. A new group gets a fair and impartial hearing, but not someone like Brock-McGuire, Bohola, Liz Carroll, Kevin Henry and all the other aforementioned.<br />
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<img src="http://api.ning.com/files/nXfCIK2chWcpcCqoGcL6D5EJzDeowwhYMtgcf2EZhxfC7Y1EmdKaSQWTJ1oeRxrbnFzXstp7N6jov5YoDMR*sOGtdpLFAwa*/cicd180.jpg?width=120" alt="" width="120" height="119" style="float: right;"/>So, with this rambling in mind, I received the new Mulcahy family album from the best promoter and distributor in the business, Alan O’Leary of Copperplate in London. Michelle Mulcahy, sister Louise and father, Mick have done it again. This time, it is called, Reelin’ in Tradition. Mick holds forth on the accordion, Michelle and Louise on every other instrument in the tradition. Does it do to tell you that Michelle was teaching master classes in the Irish harp at the age of 18? That, at 16, Louise was in the very forefront of uillean pipers? See, for you, after all these years, the hope is that you find a critic or writer in whose taste you trust. Our pal, Jimmy Keane---himself the best piano accordion player in Irish music—always says, “A cd that you love is the cheapest thing you can buy. Think of what it gives you over the years.” As usual, he is right. What I have to add is that a cd that you don’t like and will never play again is a pretty expensive thing. So, you find writers and artists whom you trust. Trust the Mulcahys. Perfection every time, every cut. This all-instrumental treat will be, for sure, at Rampant Lion and Paddy’s on the Square, locally. I can’t put it in words. This all-instrumental album is at the apex of Irish music. I’d love to tell you more, but I can’t. I’m listening to it now. Michelle is on the harp, and I am numb. Wow! Just-----perfect.<br />
<b>Rating: Four Harps</b><br />
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<img src="http://api.ning.com/files/2nAu9EafKMP9jaldT9L9OwYiTij-wyQceUQruyW9U5ra0HuEWrvGh08DkihKYhcoNUAQWoy85Ai*bwxy031KK3xdV*mTgFx2/frontcoverTS.jpg?width=120" alt="" width="120" height="106" style="float: right;"/>Then, comes Munnelly. The best vocal/instrumental act in the business. The album is Tight Squeeze. David Munnelly on button box (is he the best in the world??---probably---though if I could hear a duo with him and Paul Brock, I could die a happy man), Kieran Munnelly on flute and vocals, Paul Kelly on fiddle and mandolin, Fergal Scahill on guitar, Ryan Molloy on piano and the unexcelled Shauna Mullin on vocals. Mulcahys---meet The Munnelly Band. You both share such excellence and such a total grasp of the tradition, we are left speechless, while tapping our toes and smiling. BTW, this album has the best and funniest cover we have seen in years. Brill. This instrumental music is so perfectly conceived and played, we are left speechless. Since we heard this album and gave it its world premiere on our radio program here in Chicago, we have listened to it about 40 times at last count. Shauna’s alto continues to melt us down every time, while the band offers up a whole new level in the tradition. If you are in Chicago and reading this, you may well have seen the band in concert, as Chicago is about their fav American city. Who sounds like them? As with all the very best, no one sounds like them, though there are a ton of groups ripping them off and trying trying trying to sound like them. They can’t do it. There are lots of good vocal/instrumental groups in the business. But, there is only one Munnelly.<br />
<b>Rating: Four Harps</b><br />
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Christmas approacheth. My top three for your musical stocking stuffers this year are: The Irish and the Jews by Mick Moloney, Tight Squeeze by Munnelly and Reelin’ in Tradition. Obviously, we had other plans for our top three, but there you are.<br />
The best all-time Irish Christmas cd’s?? Bohola’s Bo-Ho-Ho-Hola, A Kiltartan Road Christmas by Kathy Cowan, and the Chieftain’s Bells of Dublin.<br />
We ran out of room. Next month we review a gorgeous and powerful new album just out from the wonderful Kat Eggleston. It is called, Speak and it is sensational.<br />
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<b>*Merry Merry and Happy Happy---and join us every Monday night for Ireland Tonight, BOTA, Part 2 from 8-9 Chicago time.</b>